Jan Piwnik (31 August 1912 – 16 June 1944) was a Polish

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

soldier, a ''

cichociemny ''Cichociemni'' (; the "Silent Unseen") were elite special-operations paratroopers of the Polish Army in exile, created in Great Britain during World War II to operate in occupied Poland (''Cichociemni Spadochroniarze Armii Krajowej''). Kazimi ...

'' and a notable leader of the

Home Army The Home Army ( pl, Armia Krajowa, abbreviated AK; ) was the dominant resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II. The Home Army was formed in February 1942 from the earlier Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Armed Resistance) es ...

in the Świętokrzyskie Mountains. He used the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

''Ponury'' ("Gloomy" or "Grim") and ''Donat''.

Biography

Jan Piwnik was born on 31 August 1912 in the village of Janowice, Kielce Voivodeship (1919–39),

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of the First World ...

, to Jan, a farmer, and Zofia (Kłonica) Piwnik. In 1933, he graduated from a reserve NCO artillery school in

Włodzimierz Wołyński Volodymyr ( uk, Володи́мир, from 1944 to 2021 Volodymyr-Volynskyi ( uk, Володи́мир-Воли́нський)) is a small city located in Volyn Oblast, in north-western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of the Volodymyr ...

. In 1935, he joined the Polish police, where he served as an officer. Mobilized in 1939, during the invasion of Poland by Germany, he commanded a motorized unit of the police. When the Soviets also attacked, on 23 September he and his unit crossed the Hungarian border and were interned. Piwnik managed to escape from the internment camp. In November 1939, he reported to the

Polish Government in Exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile ( pl, Rząd Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej na uchodźstwie), was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Pola ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

. He joined the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stre ...

, reconstituted in France at that time and was assigned to the 4th Rifle Brigade (

en cadre A cadre (, , ) is the complement of commissioned officers and non-commissioned officers of a military unit responsible for training the rest of the unit. The cadre may be the permanent skeleton establishment of a unit, around which the full unit ca ...

). After evacuation to

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following the

fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

, he joined the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade under General Stanisław Sosabowski. Piwnik was informed of creation of the '' Cichociemni'' formation, which he joined. After receiving extensive training, he was transported to Poland on 7 November 1941. There he joined the

and served at various posts. In the summer of 1942, he was assigned to head one of the '' Wachlarz'' units operating from Równe in eastern Poland (now

Rivne Rivne (; uk, Рівне ),) also known as Rovno (Russian: Ровно; Polish: Równe; Yiddish: ראָוונע), is a city in western Ukraine. The city is the administrative center of Rivne Oblast ( province), as well as the surrounding Rivne ...

in western Ukraine). Arrested by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...

, he managed to escape from the German prison and reached

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

. There he was ordered to prepare a mission to rescue his fellow ''Wachlarz'' members from the prison in Pińsk. On 18 January 1943, he and his men successfully stormed the German prison, liberated all the prisoners and hostages, and transported them safely to Warsaw. For his action, he was promoted to

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and in March was assigned to the Radom-

Kielce Kielce (, yi, קעלץ, Keltz) is a city in southern Poland, and the capital of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. In 2021, it had 192,468 inhabitants. The city is in the middle of the Świętokrzyskie Mountains (Holy Cross Mountains), on the ban ...

Home Army Area as the commanding officer of all ''

Kedyw ''Kedyw'' (, partial acronym of ''Kierownictwo Dywersji'' ("Directorate of Diversion") was a Polish World War II Home Army unit that conducted active and passive sabotage, propaganda and armed operations against Nazi German forces and collaborat ...

'' forces there. As the hilly and densely forested terrain was ideal for partisan warfare, Piwnik started to organise a large partisan unit out of many smaller, pre-existing groups. His unit, based in the forests around Wykus, was named the Home Army Partisan Group "Ponury". One of the most successful units in the area, it disrupted German transport and harassed German garrisons. However, a German counter-attack caused heavy losses to his unit and it was forced to move eastwards, towards the forests near Jeleniów. In December 1943, Piwnik was dismissed from command of the partisan units and in February of the following year, he was assigned to the Nowogródek Home Army Area, where he formed a small partisan unit. After the start of the

Operation Tempest file:Akcja_burza_1944.png, 210px, right Operation Tempest ( pl, akcja „Burza”, sometimes referred to in English as "Operation Storm") was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II against occupying German forces by the Polish Home ...

, his unit was reformed into the VII battalion of the 77th Home Army Infantry Regiment and took part in many successful actions behind German lines. He was killed in action in a successful attack against German troops near the village of Yewlashy near

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urba ...

on 16 June 1944. He had been shot in the back while retrieving a wounded comrade by a German deserter.

Posthumous

Piwnik was posthumously promoted to the rank of major and next to colonel (by a Polish Minister of Defense, in year 2012). After the war, his life became part of the popular culture of the Świętokrzyskie area. In July 1988, his body was exhumed and transferred to a crypt in the

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint B ...

monastery in

Wąchock Wąchock is a town in Starachowice County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, Poland, near Starachowice, within the historical region of Lesser Poland. In 2006, it had 2,777 inhabitants. History Wachock received its town charter in 1454, lost it in ...

Family

In November 1943, Piwnik married Emilia Malessa.

Honours and awards

* Gold Cross of the

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari ( Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', pl, Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was created in 1792 by Polish King S ...

, previously awarded the Silver Cross * Grand Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on foreigners for outstanding achievemen ...

(

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication Posthumous publication refers to material that is published after the author's death. This can be because the auth ...

, 2010) * Cross of Valour (twice)

Family

Barbara Piwnik, a Polish judge and former minister of justice, is Jan Piwnik's niece.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Piwnik, Jan 1912 births 1944 deaths People from Ostrowiec County Polish Army officers Polish resistance members of World War II Recipients of the Gold Cross of the Virtuti Militari Grand Crosses of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland)

Biography

Posthumous

Family

Honours and awards

Family

See also

References